Leggi

Latest posts by Leggi

I got rid of our front lawn early this year, it was a pain to cut and wasn't used for anything (and a rather small patch too). It now has an attempt at a wild flower garden on it, I haven't been amazed by how well it's come up, but I think it's ok and a lot more interesting than having an unused patch of lawn.

Leggi, the problem isn't your patch. Unless you have spuds infected with LB lying around the place! The spores travel on the breeze, they can come from anywhere, and revel in mild to warm, damp conditions. In a hot, dry summer you rarely see LB. In fact, you don't see many fungal problems in hot, dry conditions. I don't see many here.

All you can do is plant, do your utmost in terms of plant housekeeping, and cross your fingers. You can also spray preventively against many of the fungal problems, but the traditional fungicides - the copper based ones - are much less effective against LB.

Thanks, it's good to know all is not lost and I can try again next year.

I think the yellowing is from a magnesium deficiency, I was about to feed them just before I noticed the stem (that blackened part happened over the course of two days), I haven't needed to water them at all really so didn't get round to feeding.

I don't know whether it's a magnesium deficiency, Leggi, or just the beginning of the end for the foliage. Here's LB on a young plant with failing foliage:

It could well be as the majority of the plant looked normal. Do you have any advice on how to grow toms in gardens that have had LB or should I give up trying on my patch?

My rhubarb is huge too, think it must have loved all the rain this year. I'm certainly going to start watering ours more in dry spells. I'm not sure about picking it now, the ony reason I haven't been tempted myself is that it's now big enough to divide in to more plants in autumn.

I think the yellowing is from a magnesium deficiency, I was about to feed them just before I noticed the stem (that blackened part happened over the course of two days), I haven't needed to water them at all really so didn't get round to feeding.

Leggi, if the stems are quickly turning black it sounds like it could be Late Blight. If so, there's no saving the plant.

In general, spraying once any fungal disease symptoms are already present is a waste of time and money. It's too late. Spraying has to be preventive, meaning you spray before the spores arrive, starting a couple of weeks after planting out, then weekly or so afterwards, respraying if it rains.

Spraying doesn't guarantee you won't get fungal disease but it gives you a solid defence.

Dove - good luck!

Thanks, I think I may have to start regularly spraying them next year then. This is my fifth year of trying to grow tommies and my fifth year of blight. I've done all I can think of, not watering at all unless the plants wilt, changing the soil they grow in, giving them more room to grow (raised bed went from having 6 plants in it a few years ago to two this year) and trying to grow them in different parts of the garden has lead me to trying some in the front garden this year.

It appears that blight seems to be a problem in my area so I will just have to keep spraying if I ever want a good crop of home grown tomatoes.